Chapter Five: Even in Absence, the Pressure Remains!

After Wang Ran left, the notice he had posted caused quite a stir. After all, for ordinary disciples like them, offering a spirit jade as a reward for a missing person notice was nothing short of extravagant. Usually, they used even a single spirit jade with the utmost care—who could afford to hand one out so casually, as Wang Ran had just done? As a result, a crowd had already gathered around the mission board.

"Hey, come check out this task—it's really something else!"

"A missing person notice?"

"My goodness, just for a missing person notice, the reward is a whole spirit jade?"

"That's insanely generous!"

"Who posted this mission?"

"No idea."

"It must be one of the elite disciples!"

"Could it be someone from the Inner Sect? With our Outer Sect stipends, we couldn't possibly afford that."

"It has to be!"

A group of Outer Sect disciples stood before the notice, pointing and whispering, eventually coming to the conclusion that this mission must have been posted by a prodigy from the Inner Sect. Envy and flattery filled the air, and some even began inquiring who the prodigy was, hoping to curry favor.

Just then, the junior sister who handled Wang Ran's task finished her day's work. She bounced out, looking innocent and pure. The Outer Sect disciples quickly stopped her, asking, "Junior Sister, do you know who posted this mission?"

Her cheeks flushed pink. "Of course I do—it was Senior Brother Wang Ran, who is skilled in so many arts!"

"Wang Ran?"

"Which Wang Ran?"

"There's no Wang Ran among the Inner Sect disciples."

"Could it be... the very same Wang Ran from our Outer Sect?"

"Impossible! He’s only at the peak of Qi Condensation—how could he have such a high stipend?"

"But as far as I know, he's the only Wang Ran in our sect!"

"Junior Sister, are you sure it’s Wang Ran?"

Voices of disbelief rippled through the group, until finally someone couldn’t help but ask.

Junior Sister Yan Wanrou nodded earnestly. "Yes, it’s Senior Brother Wang Ran from the Outer Sect."

A collective gasp swept through the crowd.

"It’s really him!"

"Has he gone mad, offering a spirit jade just to find someone?"

"Or could it be that Wang Ran is so wealthy now that he doesn’t care about a spirit jade?"

"If this were an Inner Sect disciple, I wouldn't be surprised, but for Wang Ran... It's just too unbelievable!"

A single spirit jade was worth a significant sum. For context, the mission board usually offered only half a spirit jade for exterminating a demon beast. Yet Wang Ran had posted a missing person notice with a reward of a full spirit jade—it was beyond comprehension.

Meanwhile, in the purple bamboo forest of the rear mountain where Wang Ran lived, he was making his way through the woods when suddenly a series of system notifications chimed in his mind.

"Ding! Congratulations, host Wang Ran, for causing a moderate mental shock to the Outer Sect disciples. You have gained two Dao Points!"

"Ding! Congratulations, host Wang Ran, for acquiring the title 'Boasting Across a Thousand Miles.' Reward: five Dao Points!"

Wang Ran was left bewildered by the notifications. What was going on? He hadn’t done anything! How had he earned Dao Points already?

Could it be that his aura of dominance had leaked out without him realizing? And what was this 'Boasting Across a Thousand Miles' title supposed to mean? Wang Ran checked, and saw a line inscribed: "Though not present in person, one's aura still carries forth—thus is the art of boasting across a thousand miles!"

This left Wang Ran thoroughly vexed. By nature, he was indifferent to fame and wealth, and loathed showing off. He preferred to stay low-profile, like wearing fine robes at night—discreet and unassuming. Modesty, after all, was the true path!

He sighed in frustration. The way the system was set up, it was practically forcing him to show off! Still, on the bright side, thanks to the recent notifications, his Dao Points had now surpassed the key threshold of ten.

He opened his personal status page and, just as expected, it clearly showed fifteen Dao Points!

He could finally draw a Daoist technique!

The thought of breaking through to the Foundation Establishment stage made Wang Ran’s heart burn with anticipation. Without further ado, he sat down on a boulder by the roadside and eagerly opened the system interface.

A new option appeared in the lottery section—Daoist Technique Draw!

The old lottery function only yielded items, but this one was dedicated to Daoist techniques. The price, however, was steep—it cost ten Dao Points per draw.

Rubbing his palms with excitement, he tapped the option.

"Ding! Does the host wish to use ten Dao Points for a draw?"

Gritting his teeth, Wang Ran decided that Dao Points could always be earned again; improving his strength took priority. He confirmed his choice.

"Ding! Host has spent ten Dao Points. Drawing your reward now..."

A spinning wheel appeared before his eyes, whirling at breakneck speed. Wang Ran felt a mixture of nerves and hope—if only he could draw a top-tier Daoist technique! The lowest was one star, the highest ten.

Others relied on their comprehension, but Wang Ran could only depend on luck. If he landed a ten-star technique, that would be absolutely thrilling!

As he was mulling this over, the display abruptly changed.

"Ding! Congratulations, host Wang Ran, for obtaining the eight-star Daoist technique 'Diamond Glazed Body'!"

Wang Ran was stunned for a moment, then his eyes lit up with joy.

An eight-star Daoist technique! This was top-tier—he hadn’t expected his luck to be so exceptional. In all the Nine Provinces, those who possessed an eight-star Daoist technique were exceedingly rare.

Delighted, Wang Ran hurriedly checked the system’s description.

Diamond Glazed Body: Originates from the world of "Battle Through the Heavens," a Heaven-tier low-level combat technique. Transforms the body into diamond glass—nothing can resist its might, nothing is indestructible. At full mastery, the body reaches nine zhang and nine chi in height, shining with golden light; a fist can shatter the sky, a foot can split the earth!

"What the—Battle Through the Heavens?"

Reading the description, Wang Ran was flabbergasted. He had, of course, read this masterpiece before crossing over—he was even a diehard fan. No wonder the name sounded so familiar; it was from "Battle Through the Heavens"!

He was intimately familiar with the ranking system of techniques in that world: Heaven, Earth, Mysterious, and Yellow—Heaven being the highest, Yellow the lowest, each further divided into upper, middle, and lower grades.

A Heaven-tier low-level combat technique was already something that defied the heavens! Wang Ran quickly deduced that since Diamond Glazed Body was classified as an eight-star Daoist technique but was considered Heaven-tier low in "Battle Through the Heavens," then a nine-star technique should correspond to Heaven-tier middle. Naturally, a ten-star Daoist technique would be Heaven-tier high.

It seemed that the cultivation world he was now in was on par with the world of "Battle Through the Heavens."

"Ding! Would the host like to learn Diamond Glazed Body now?"

Pulled from his thoughts by the prompt, Wang Ran hesitated only briefly before choosing to learn it.

"Ding! Host Wang Ran is now learning the eight-star Daoist technique 'Diamond Glazed Body.' Due to the high grade of this technique, the host will fall unconscious for one hour!"

At that instant, Wang Ran felt his entire body go weak, a wave of drowsiness overcoming him. He collapsed onto the boulder beneath him.

"Damn it, system, you tricked me! Why didn’t you warn me about this?"